The second phase of the Chi Lam Vai ancient well cleanup project, scheduled to last two months, commenced yesterday.
According to Tang Kam Chun, a Chi Lam Village resident and vice-president of the Na Tcha Temple Association, over one hundred lorryloads of construction waste were removed in the first cleanup.
Pátio do Espinho (茨林圍 – Chi Lam Vai – in Cantonese), is a 400-year-old, formerly walled village that lies just a street away from the UNESCO World Heritage-protected Na Tcha Temple, one of Macau’s two temples dedicated to the divinity known in Putonghua as Nezha. It is also close to the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Ruins of St Paul’s.
Tang said that on December 12, 2022, the day the well was reopened, a Japanese expert specialising in ancient wells was present for an inspection and noted that its structure resembles that of ancient wells in Japan.
The Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) had since assembled a team of experts to conduct an in-depth study of the well’s structure, confirming that its history dates back approximately 400 years and is closely linked to the development of the village, Tang said.
He also mentioned that before tap water was available, the well served as a vital daily water source for the villagers.
He said that the well required restoration because 40 years ago workers from a nearby construction site illegally dumped a huge amount of construction waste in it. Tang pointed out that during the first phase of the cleanup in 2023, over one hundred truckloads of construction waste were removed from it.
Some villagers shared childhood anecdotes with the Post yesterday, recalling how they used to lower watermelons into the well with a rope to soak them, retrieving the naturally chilled fruit by dinnertime. They also remembered the well water’s unique trait – “cool in hot weather and warm in cold weather” –as well as past accidents like children falling into the well –all of whom were rescued. These are just a few fragments of life from the shared memories of the longtime residents of Chi Lam Vai.
The villagers have also put forward a raft of suggestions, hoping that after the current cleanup is completed, facilities such as a solar-powered lighting system could be installed inside the well, apart from beautifying the surrounding environment, installing benches, and opening the site of the ancient well to visitors.
A part of “Fist of Fury” (精武門), a 1972 film featuring San Francisco-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor and filmmaker Bruce Lee (李小龍;1940-1973), was shot in Chi Lam Vai.
This photo taken on Monday shows the ancient well in Chi Lam Vai that is undergoing its second cleanup. – Photo courtesy of Na Cha Temple Association Vice-President Tang Kam Chun
